TW: Mentioned death, foster homes, depressing thoughts.
Riven
There was most definitely something on the mind of Riven that day. Though Riven was a hard guy to read, anyone close to him could tell he was having an off day.
He seemed to be on the edge throughout the day. He was quieter. It had seemed he had gone back and reverted to his first year self again, when he had been with Darcy.
And, frankly? It was irritating to them all.
Helia could sense the tension-filled aura that surrounded the magenta haired boy. He decided to avoid him for the time being. Helia wasn't really the emotional type of person, contrary to the romantic-poet type of personality he held. He had no business around him, anyway, so he strayed away.
Timmy had not noticed, due to being turned at the computer when he asked Riven a question about the recent functions on his weapon. He received no response, so he asked again. He jumped when he snapped back, and so Timmy decided to back off.
Nabu, who would usually talk to Riven was gone for the day.
They had been respectful of keeping distant. However, as for the remaining two specialists…
Sky and Brandon, they really hadn't meant anything by their teasing. However, when Sky had made a light-hearted comment to Riven, he instantly snapped back. And the two admittedly still held a rivalry. It wasn't as bad as it had been. However, it seemed that the two had reverted back to their first-year squabbles. Brandon attempted playing mediator, although it was obvious that he was on Sky's side. So much for help.
The squabbling remained as they walked back from training to their rooms.
"God, Sky! Quit being such a pain!" Riven snapped back. Brandon stood in the middle of the two, nervously.
"You're the one who kept screwing up on teamwork maneuvers! Seriously, we're supposed to act like a team! God, what is wrong with you?"
That's when Riven paused. He looked to Sky, disbelief in his eyes before he snapped back his attention to the argument at hand. "I tried, Sky! I really did! It's not my fault that you couldn't handle it!" Although his words held the same amount of venom, it was obvious that he was caught off-handed.
Sky rolled his eyes, oblivious to any changes. "Really now? It didn't seem like you were trying at all! Your stance was pathetic today!" If not before, Riven looked slightly hurt. He took a step back, before spinning around.
"Oh yeah, blame it all on me, don't you?" He muttered, before leaving towards the exit. "I'm going to be the responsible one and end this here." He mumbled, spinning to leave. /
"- Wait, what?" Sky was most definitely confused. Riven tended to banter on before the two had been fighting. Although, Sky sounded a tad bit harsher, he expected Riven to bite back. This was concerning…
Riven marched out. A little dramatic, yes, but his head was spinning. An overwhelming of thoughts filled his head. He had to be alone, he had to be alone-
They were disappointed, Riven could tell that much. "Don't cry, Riven. Once you're old enough, you can leave. That is, if they keep you around that long." He thought, his twelve year old head thought.
His recent foster parents were different from the others,granted, but they were bound to get rid of him. There never was a good family he was placed in, and Riven doubted they would they would be the change. The last ones sent him back because of , and he quoted, 'disciplinary issues'. His most recent ones seemed nice in the beginning, though Riven knew from experience that it wouldn't last. They did last the longest, though. He gave them that.
"Riven, you didn't have to fight him. You could've told the teacher you know." His foster mom sighed, and Riven gave a belligerent shrug. He knew he messed up. He knew he was being sent back.
And soon enough, two weeks later, he packed his bags and was sent back to the shelter.
Riven sat down, leaning against a tree. Not the most appealing place, but the trees were nice and gave him shade. Plus, he could easily get away for a little while. He took a deep breath.
Damnit, did you have to argue with Sky?
He knew it was bantering. He knew that he had only meant it for the betterment of him-
Did he have to be a screw-up?
Riven hated it when his thoughts took over. He usually pushed them aside and masked it with duct tape. However, he couldn't stop them. They overflowed in his head, a never-ending mantra of thoughts.
You screwed up, Riven.
You're the reason the team doesn't get along
You're the reason dad hates you
You're the reason mom di-
He hadn't realized that someone had approached him before it was too late. Startled, he nearly smacked the person in front of him. Thankfully the person quickly dodged, moving out of the way. He blinked, before realizing he had been crying. He quickly turned around, wiping tears away.
The person stepped back cautiously, not saying anything. There was a moment of silence, before-
"Hello, Riven."
Oh. It was Flora. He wasn't the closest to the flower-fairy, but he was pretty familiar with her. They talked, occasionally. "What do you want." He pretended to not hear the crack in his voice, although he cringed at the voice crack. He could nearly feel Flora's worried gaze.
"I was walking through the forest, when I saw you. Are you-"
"-Alright? Frankly, I'm not, Flora. I would also not like to have this conversation right now. So, just live up to your stereotype and go check out some flowers." He knew he sounded harsh, but he didn't want the company.
He was surprised when Flora didn't take the hint. She usually would have left him alone. Instead, she pulled something from the back of her back. A bouquet..? Before he had time to contemplate what was going on, she placed the flowers down and hugged him closely.
"Riven, I- I'm sorry. Today's the day, isn't it?" She said, softly. Riven was confused. What..?
"Riven, I know that this isn't the ideal place, or person, to talk to this about. However, I want to tell you that you're a great person. You're worth it. She would have thought the same."
Wait.
How did Flora know?
He looked to her, confused and angry. Right. Faeries. He had been against a tree. Flora could sense a tree's emotion. Perhaps even thoughts, which would mean-
"You were rooting around in my head?!" He nearly shrieked, stepping back. No way. He hadn't told anyone of this. He had told parts to Musa, but that had been it. It wasn't fair of Flora to suddenly up and know all of this information.
Flora looked visibly surprised, shaking her head. "No, Riven. You literally dropped your phone out here, and your calendar notification popped up when I checked to see whose phone it was. It read 'Happy birthday, mom.' You never spoke of your family, and you looked upset. I put the pieces together."
Oh. He had been dumb. Flora looked up to him, a warm gaze clear as honey. "...Look. I know you don't know me that much. I know that you would rather wait to open up. But, really Riven. I'm always here if you want to talk, okay? Do you want to talk?"
"...Why should I tell you? You're going to think it's stupid." He finally said, after moments of silence.
"I promise I won't. Riven, we all care about you. You're a part of the team. But, more than that, you're family."
Needless to say, the dam that he had built up had broken as someone had finally broken down on the shield he had spent years on building. He weakly nodded, before talking. And, not once did she patronize or criticize him.
It was from this moment on that he officially opened up to someone, and he had officially declared that he would protect this fairy at all costs. Someone that he could call family.
Me: I have to update Igor-who and Keeping Up, alongside homework.
Also me: write the new story down-
Hey, everyone! Welcome to my new series. Definitely a bit darker than my usual work, so my rating's going to be a teen instead of kids. Basically, I've really badly been wanting to write this concept down for a while now! As for Igor Who and Keeping up with the Specialists, they may have to wait until February because of exam times. This was my break from homework!
Tell me if you enjoyed this, or leave any criticism down below! Seriously, your reviews keep me going! Peace out. - Lili